In phototypesetting, a light sensitive surface is illuminated in the shape of an image such as an alphanumeric or other character. The light sensitive surface may be the face of a CRT or may be a light sensitive sheet imaged by a laser beam or other suitable means. Such phototypesetting systems and printing systems are as shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,199,815 and 4,231,096, employing a CRT and a laser beam respectively. Where characters are imaged in varying sizes, the size of the character is limited by the size of the CRT screen or the range of the light sensitive sheet over which a beam such as a laser may be directed, or generally, in the case where these or other imaging means are used, the physical area over which the imaging means is constrained physically. In such cases, the size of the character capable of being displayed is limited by the size of the imaging area. Where larger sized characters are to be imaged, then the size, cost and complexity of the system must be increased accordingly to accommodate those larger sized characters.